Ware Malcomb Tapped for Fender Musical Instruments Headquarters

Interior Design Staff -- Interior Design, 6/1/2012 2:00:00 AM

When Fender Musical Instruments' lease came up in Scottsdale, Arizona, the legendary guitar manufacture tapped Ware Malcomb to consolidate employees and showcase its brand history at a new corporate headquarters.

Ware Malcomb's goal was to transform Fender's new 110,000-square-foot, two-level office building into a cohesive structure centered around an enclosed atrium. Previously, the staff was spread across three buildings separated by large parking lots.

Fender established its presence in the music world when Leo Fender designed the first Fender Telecaster guitar in 1950. Accordingly,  Ware Malcomb showcased the brand's industry history via two 35-foot-high Stratocaster and Telecaster guitar wall murals in the two-level atrium. Walls are also lined with portraits of famous musicians, while the floor plate has built-in stages and platforms for jam sessions and informal meetings, and punctuated by columns with more murals of famous guitars. On the first floor, Ware Malcomb positioned two reception areas, a café and kitchen, showroom, store, conference rooms, wellness rooms, video production rooms, R&D labs, a sound room, and more. The R&D department is a production space for creating and recreating instruments, while the revolutionary structure dubbed the "kaboom" room is an extreme amplifier-testing facility.The café and kitchen feature exposed concrete floors, ceilings, and ductwork.

On the second floor, Ware Malcomb placed conference rooms, break rooms, and break-out spaces. Making the most once again of the atrium, second-floor office areas converge in the center, where two bridges run across the space, flanked by 30-foot-high, back-lit resin walls. Conference rooms named after musicians like George Harrison, Stevie Ray Vaughn, and Randy Rhoades sing Fender's praises loud and clear.